The Use of the Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services to Assess and Improve the Job Performance of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities
Supervisors with intellectual disabilities can run the PDC-HS and fix their staff’s job-performance problems.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Smith et al. (2018) asked supervisors who themselves have intellectual disabilities to use the Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services.
The checklist walks a supervisor through four areas: training, resources, motivation, and prompts.
After the checklist pointed to training gaps, the supervisors taught their staff how to price items correctly in a sheltered workshop.
What they found
Job accuracy rose only after the checklist-selected training package began.
The same supervisors who needed daily support could still lead a data-driven fix for their own crew.
How this fits with other research
Wilder et al. (2018) ran the same checklist with clinic staff who did not have ID and also saw gains, showing the tool works across ability levels.
Guercio et al. (2023) later moved the checklist into group homes and lifted data-collection accuracy to ninety-plus percent, proving the method travels.
Johnson et al. (1994) once used a simple weekly checklist with ID supervisors and got steady gains; Smith adds a formal diagnostic step, updating that older line of work.
Why it matters
If your agency hires supervisors with ID, give them the PDC-HS. The brief survey lets them spot why staff slip up and pick a fix that works. You save trainer time and build real independence.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services (PDC-HS) is an informant-based tool designed to identify the variables responsible for performance problems. To date, the PDC-HS has not been examined with individuals with intellectual disabilities. In the current study, two supervisors with intellectual disabilities completed the PDC-HS to assess the productivity of two supervisees with disabilities who performed a pricing task in a thrift store. The PDC-HS suggested that performance deficits were due to a lack of training; a PDC-HS-indicated intervention was effective to increase accurate pricing. • The PDC-HS is an informant-based tool designed to identify the variables responsible for employee performance problems in human service settings. • The PDC-HS can be completed by some individuals with intellectual disabilities in a supervisory position to identify the variables responsible for problematic job performance among their supervisees. • A PDC-HS indicated intervention was demonstrated to be effective to improve the job performance of individuals with disabilities. • The PDC-HS may be a useful tool to support performance improvement and job maintenance among individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2018 · doi:10.1007/s40617-018-0213-4